Chapter Text
It was late evening and Castiel Novak was in the bakery wiping down the empty tables left by the recent customers. A large party of college students had wandered in again and had a great time. It wasn't all that messy, but a couple of them must have had some drinks before coming because they spilled their water and sodas a few times. He sprayed from an old milky plastic spray bottle that had 'cleaner' written on it in now-faded permanent marker. The blue-eyed man quickly got to work wiping down the laminated cherry wood table before moving forward to spray the ivory leather benches.
It is Castiel's cousin, Gabriel, is the one who owns the bakery. He is twenty-four and graduated from culinary school two years ago. When the business first opened Castiel was surprised at its opening in general but even more so from Gabriel's tasteful design choice. He found a weird blend of Rustic and Hollywood Regency architecture that just blended with the place. Bright colours mixed with calming woods and glass. The tables were all laminated and made from cherry wood whist the chairs and loveseat of the bakery were ivory leather with a deep wine red. The floor was a greyish white and made out of smooth tile, and the windows took up most of the outer walls of the front of the establishment. Castiel was shocked at how cozy yet chic Gabriel had fashioned the place, and even more so that he had already paid off the loans because of how well he was doing.
No doubt that a large part of the bakery's success was due to the choice of location as it was close to the center of town. Castiel was also used to college students coming in through the bakery any time he worked. The medium-sized bakery was retrofitted from an old restaurant, so it was quite large as opposed to other local shops, and it sat just a block away from the town's local university. If anything at least fifty percent of the revenue came from college students and professors. It was also helpful that they lived in a medium-sized town in Arizona, which meant that there were plenty of people wanting to support a well-run local business.
It was Friday evening so everything was rather busy around the shop as most of the tables were filled and there was a decent line in front of the register. Castiel normally didn't work on Fridays because he took the time to catch up on work before taking the night off for himself. The blue-eyed man is currently twenty-three and enrolled in the nursing program at the University so he's taking a lot of difficult and heavy text-based courses which means that he has a lot of terms and procedures that he has to memorize. Castiel loves nursing and it's an interesting subject to him, but it's also a big energy drain on his mental state.
The college student finished up wiping down the seats before scanning the bakery floor in case another table opened up. When he found that they were all still full and lively, he made his way back behind the counter and passed the new hire, Jack, on his way through the back door. Jack Kline is only nineteen and the second youngest that Gabriel had hired on for staff. He was manning the counter and trying desperately to not mess any of the customer's orders up. Claire Novak - who was unrelated to Castiel, they just shared the same last name - was helping Jack at the main counter and trying her best to keep him calm. She is Gabriel's teen prodigy or so he says, she's currently enrolled in culinary school and is actually quite good at baking. Gabriel says that once one of her creations impresses him enough that he'll feature it on the main menu, and ever since she's been working hard to make it happen.
The ravenette put the cleaning solution away and threw the rag into the sink before peeking his head back out to check on Jack and Claire. The boy seemed to be getting the hang of it better with Claire helping him and double-checking how he was inputting things into the register, so Castiel simply returned to the back to take a short break. The only reason he decided to work today was that Gabriel was nervous about meeting his girlfriend's brother. All Castiel really knew about Gabriel's girlfriend is that her name is Sam and he really doesn't talk about her all that much, and when he does talk about Sam he always gets this blissful look on his face.
He moved over and into the back area where through a doorway there was a small staff lounge. He took off his work apron and hung it up on one of the many hooks on the wall. Castiel then sat down on the plush burgundy couch and let out a sigh. He had been up since ten a.m. for his early morning classes before starting his shift here at one p.m. It was now around seven and he's technically off now, but he was waiting for Charlie to show up for her shift before he really rested.
Charlie is Castiel's best friend. He met her back in high school in Utah back when he lived with his older brothers Michael and Lucifer and their younger sister Anna. They first met in study hall freshman year and hit it off almost immediately. Castiel was pretty meek at the time and Charlie has always been relatively bubbly, but somehow the opposites attracting thing really seemed to work with them. Charlie is currently pursuing a technology degree even though she had surpassed her teachers in skill by the time she graduated high school. Her reasoning for getting the degree was to avoid sketchy jobs in order to support her living and go for more reliable and stable jobs instead. She could do far more than any of what the jobs actually required, but most places wouldn't even give her a second glance without an actual degree.
After a few minutes of Castiel thinking about the past, he heard the back door open and shut. He peeked his head around to see through the doorway and saw a small bush of red hair bounce into view and he grinned.
"Hey, Castiel!" Charlie beamed and moved over to the lockers in the guest room.
"Hey, Charlie." Castiel smiled.
"Sorry I'm a little late, I got hung up in a game." Charlie took off her jacket and shirt and exchanged them for the bakery's t-shirt that she had in her locker. Gabriel liked the idea of actual uniforms, but he figured that a nice grey t-shirt and black pants looked good on everyone, and was far less expensive.
"Your boobs look higher, new bra?" Castiel asked as Charlie put on her work shirt.
"Huh! So you noticed! Yes!" Charlie smiled and turned towards him. "It's only a little bit of push-up, but you can tell?"
"Yes, I can. Although it's probably because you've undressed in front of me hundreds of times since high school." He was referring to the fact that they were in theatre together. "I imagine this is about that girl who shows up to the library on Fridays?"
"Yes!" Charlie sighed and leaned dramatically against the wall. "Dorothy. She's gorgeous and a total genius. Gosh, I'm crushing for her harder than I crush for Hermione."
Castiel mocked a gasp. "What? You enjoying a real person's company more than a fictional character's? Never."
"Never!" Charlie laughed as she stood up to put on her apron before moving over to staddle Castiel's lap. "I'm so freaking excited dude. I'm gonna ask her out next Friday when I see her." She beamed and hugged him. Castiel was grateful for the relationship that the two had together, even if from the outside it may have seemed strange, it meant so much to him to have her in his life.
"That's awesome Charlie!" He hugged her back and smiled at her. Castiel was glad that Charlie was actually interested in someone since high school. After Jo Harvell had shot down Charlie in their junior year because she liked Benny, Charlie hadn't really found anyone that she liked as much since.
"Hey, Gaybies." A voice called from out of the room. Charlie and Castiel turned their heads to see Gabriel standing in the doorway. "Charlie go get your lesbo-butt out there and take over for Claire."
Charlie rolled her eyes before getting off of Castiel. "Yes sir, Mr. Boss Man. She grinned and trotted past him and towards the front.
"Where've you been? I haven't seen you around." Castiel asked.
"I was in the office mulling over some new recipes. I've also looked over a few of Claire's since she's extremely persistent. I want her to switch so I can tell her the two that I want her to pursue and see if they're worth anything."
"Hard at work then." Castiel nodded before standing up and moving over to his locker. He quickly changed back into a white shirt and put his apron in his locker.
"Yep. Also, Sam and Dean-brother-are gonna be here soon. Or at least that's what they told me."
"Alright, I'll go save a table I guess." Castiel shrugged on his trenchcoat. "I don't know what your girlfriend looks like though."
Gabriel looked as if he was going to move away from the doorway but he stopped. "Look, Cas. I know I never explicitly said it...but..." Gabriel paused as if something was weighing on his brain and heart.
"What is it?" Castiel asked.
"Sam's a guy, Cassie." Gabriel sighed. "I've been trying to just refer to them as Sam and avoid pronouns but... I can't do it forever."
"Why would you think I care? I'm gay, Gabe!" Castiel's brow furrowed.
"I know that Cassie, it's just-"
"It's just Michael right. Or Luci?" Castiel frowned and Gabriel stayed silent. "I'm not gonna go snitching to them!"
Gabriel stood up straight. "One of the only reasons they let you come here is because they think they can trust me! But they also don't trust me enough that they wanted goody-two-shoes Castiel keeping an eye on me." Gabriel ran his hand through his hair and Castiel glared at him. "Don't give me that, I know they've been asking for reports on me, Cassie. They ask me for reports on you as well." Castiel was stunned and Gabriel just sighed. "I just didn't know how much I could trust you, Cassie."
"It's been a year, Gabe."
"And that's why I'm ready to tell you." Gabriel met his eyes. "I know how hard it was to get out of their brainwashing crap whenever they had an inkling of sin and therefore took the excuse to use it on you, but it used to be so much worse, Cassie. You're lucky that Balthazar was around when you were in high school and had your back. It took him forever before he had mine. I'm not used to this 'trusting' people thing yet but I'm trying."
Castiel sighed and stared up at his cousin for a few moments. "I'm sorry." He suddenly remembered all of the 'lessons' that he had to endure in high school whenever his brothers were 'worried' about him. "It's okay." He told Gabriel steadily. "I'm not mad. It's okay. It's okay that you're dating a guy." He met his cousin's eyes and Gabriel seemed to let go of an invisible weight. "I thought that you would trust me, but I understand why you wouldn't. None of that matters now because it's okay. You can trust me and I won't be telling Michael or Luci. Your secret's safe with me." Castiel moved forward to pull Gabriel into a hug. Gabriel let out a sigh and hugged the man back before stepping away.
"Thanks, Cassie. It means a lot." Gabe smiled before slapping the other man on the back. "Now, get outta here. I believe you. We don't need to unpack everything today."
Castiel smiled and moved past Gabriel towards the front of the bakery again. He passed Jack and smirked at how much Charlie was making his blush. She liked poking fun at Jack because he was relatively easy to tease and everyone took advantage of it, but it made him feel better that Jack knew how they all loved and appreciated him. Castiel glanced around and noticed that the table he had cleaned earlier was still open and Claire had switched with Charlie and started cleaning some other empty tables. He moved over to the clean table and sat back. I still don't know what Sam even looks like. Knowing he's a man now doesn't change much. Castiel spaced out in thought. Unless it's Sam Winchester, the kid who's always in here studying. I'm pretty sure he's studying Psychology and Philosophy for Pre-law. I guess we'll see if he comes in with a guy that looks like him I guess.
Castiel subconsciously shrugged before snapping out of his daze. He glanced around the bakery and noticed it had settled to an easy capacity. The bakery was full, but there was no line. He glanced at Charlie who was piping words onto a cake in a demonstration for Jack. Gabriel only let about half of the entire staff bake or decorate his cakes; all the recipes belonged to him and it's why he was so protective of them. If someone messed up in his name then it would be on him, that's why only Gabe himself, Castiel, Charlie, and Claire were able to bake and decorate the cakes. Castiel took pride in that he was allowed to decorate them since he had really steady hands and was actually very creative with his designs. When his cousin had first opened the bakery, he asked Castiel for help with some of the cakes that he wasn't sure how to decorate. Gabriel was amazing at balancing flavour and texture, but when it came to actually decorating cakes he preferred minimalism and that wasn't enough to draw customers in at the time. Now, Gabriel has a small line of treats and baked goods that he calls his 'Minimalistic line' but he leaves his other baked treats up to Castiel to spruce up.
The door to the bakery opened and the small bell chimed, on instinct, Castiel's head turned to see who walked in and as did Charlie and Jack's. Charlie beamed and quickly put away the cake she had just finished piping. "Dean!" Charlie chimed.
"Hey, Charlie!" The voice came from a tall and gruff-looking man with short light brown hair. Castiel blushed when he noticed how green his eyes were and turned away when he realized he was staring. It was only when he looked away and recognized Sam standing off to the side of the man. Oh no, that's his brother? It must be, Gabe said Sam's brother's name was 'Dean'. Castiel gulped. It had been a while since he had felt so drawn to another person, and it felt weird that this new attraction seemed to be directed at his cousin's boyfriend's brother.
"It's been a while!" Charlie came from around the corner and wrapped her arms around Dean. The other man smiled and hugged her in return. You could barely see Charlie with how tall the other man was, he practically consumed her small frame.
"Yeah, it has." Dean released her and she mocked taking a giant breath. He chuckled. "Get into any trouble since I last saw you?"
"Only always." She smiled. "So this your brother that you've told me about? Sam?" Charlie turned to Sam. "You have a brother?"
Castiel's heart stopped when he heard the word 'brother' followed by 'Sam'. It's gotta be them. No way this is a coincidence. He sighed before sliding his legs over to the side of the loveseat so he could face the newcomers.
"Uh, yeah. This is Sammy." He slapped his brother on the back.
"Sam's fine." Sam quickly moved in front of Dean to greet the small redhead. Sam towered over the girl even more than Dean did.
Charlie looked at Dean. "Well, I'm used to seeing him around, but I didn't know he was your brother! What brings the two of you in? Normally Sam just takes up a table and orders later, and he barely talks."
"Probably because you're so intimidating!" Castiel called over to her.
Charlie mocked anger and put her fists on her hips and blew a raspberry in his direction. Sam and Dean had both looked over when Castiel's voice rang out. Sam blushed and looked away when he realized that he must be officially meeting Gabriel's cousin-whom Gabe basically saw as a younger brother. Whereas Dean blushed because of the sudden angel of a man in front of him. Dean took in the swept hair, slight stubble, and bright blue eyes and found himself a little starstruck. Dean took an intake of breath when Castiel's eyes glanced over to meet his own before turning back to Charlie.
"I feel like I'm plenty welcoming. Jack loves me!" Charlie motioned to the boy standing by the register.
"Please keep me out of this." Jack quickly mumbled just audibly before ducking his head back behind the display case.
Castiel laughed and Dean felt butterflies fly through his stomach. "You're wonderful Charlie, but they're here to meet Gabe and me." He met her eyes and she suddenly had a realization that made them light up.
"Wait a minute, that Sam is-!" Charlie gasped and Sam blushed.
"Yes." He quickly cut her off.
"When did you-?"
"Today. Now calm down, I'm sure Gabe will fill you in later." Castiel smiled. Dean's heart did a flip when he saw the other man grin, but he quickly realized how screwed he was. This man is gonna be the death of me. Charlie nodded before quickly returning behind the counter. He could tell her brain was firing off a million questions, but Sam looked at Castiel gratefully before moving over to him. Dean awkwardly shuffled behind him when he realized where they were walking. "Hey, Sam. So, uh, you're 'Sam'?"
Sam chuckled awkwardly before taking a seat and scooting over for his brother to join. Castiel turned his legs back in and brushed Dean's foot as he did so. The two both met eyes before quickly dodging and looking away. "Uh, yeah. Sorry about not telling you."
"It's okay, Gabe already mostly explained everything. It's all good." He reassured him. The three sat in a short awkward silence where Dean and Castiel kept stealing the tiniest glances at each other.
"So, you know this guy then, Sam?" Dean spoke up and Castiel blushed at how smooth yet gravely his voice sounded.
"Yeah, kinda. He's Gabriel's cousin." A look of shock crossed Dean's face but he quickly shoved his realization down. "I see him at the bakery a lot when I come here since he also works here." Castiel nodded. "We've also seen each other around school before. He's in one of my Psychology classes." Sam shrugged. Since they were currently talking about Castiel, Dean took in the time to stare at the other man who was only too aware that he was staring. The ravenette sighed in relief when he heard the back door open with a 'woosh' and he knew Gabriel was here.
"Hey, boys didn't mean to keep you waiting." Gabe smiled. Castiel scooted out of his seat and took care not to bump into Dean this time. "Hey Jack, don't do that!" Gabriel called and Jack spits out the water he was drinking. Charlie and Gabriel started laughing before Charlie quickly started to reassure Jack that he was only joking. Castiel chuckled but turned to Gabe and motioned at the seat. Gabriel took the hint and moved into the booth first so that he would be able to face the opposite of Sam. Unfortunately for Castiel, that meant that he was now sitting directly across from Dean.
However, it was now Dean's turn to focus on being the protective older brother instead. The man took the opportunity to size up Gabriel and Sam rolled his eyes in response. "So, you're Gabriel."
"And you're Dean," Gabe smirked.
"So how'd you meet?" Dean asked and Sam rolled his eyes.
"The bakery." Gabriel motioned. "I work a lot, and Sam would come in here to study."
"I already told you all of this, Dean." Sam looked at him and Dean shrugged.
"I'm here to meet and get to know the guy, can't I ask him questions?" Dean asked.
Sam rolled his eyes and Dean simply grinned like an idiot as if he harassed Sam like this every day, and Castiel figured that he probably did. Castiel looked over at Gabriel and his cousin simply shrugged.
Gabriel chuckled. "Sam's description of you seems to be pretty accurate." He commented.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Dean bristled like an angry cat.
"Possibly short-tempered and overprotective." He bluntly responded
Castiel chuckled and caught himself before he started laughing. Everyone seemed surprised by the outburst and their eyes immediately went to Castiel. "Yeah? What's so funny?" Dean asked and Castiel quickly quieted himself.
"I just agree." Castiel whipped him with his sass. "It's extremely accurate." Dean blushed and was taken aback when Castiel met his eyes. "I mean, c'mon. Gabe walks in and immediately you're puffed up." It's cute. Castiel thought. "Here I was worried you were some thug with the way you walked in here, but you're really just a softie who will protect his brother at all costs." He smiled and Gabriel smirked with him.
"Thanks for being my second set of eyes, Cassie. You're good now." Gabriel pats his cousin on the back. Dean looked at them in confusion. "Y'see Dean, I view myself for a realistic judge of character, but I like having Castiel here to confirm."
"I feel like I just went under a damn trial just to meet you." Dean pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance. "Look, I just came to meet who my brother is seeing, I'm not here for a friggen exam." Dean left the seat and stood up. "I'm sure you're a great guy, Sam's got a great sense about people so I'm sure you're fine." He started walking away. Sam looked slightly nervous and Castiel, noticing this, quickly stepped up to the plate.
"I mean, he's okay." Castiel found himself standing up. "He's a great guy, but he can also be incredibly selfish and persistent. He's a trickster and could pickpocket you easily if he tried." Dean turned around to look at the man in the trench coat. "He's an ass and curses like a sailor, but he's one of the most generous and loving people I know. And he may look like it, but he's not some fuckboy who's out to break your brother's heart." Dean gave the other man a perplexed stare. This was not at all how he expected this to go.
"I'm touched." Gabriel gave his cousin a small smile from the booth and Castiel merely shrugged. "However, you shouldn't be fighting my battles for me. Dean-o, let's go talk outside, 'kay?" Gabriel moved out from the booth and he and Dean went back through the front door.
Castiel turned as he heard Sam let out a long sigh. The shorter man gave him a soft smiled before taking a seat in the booth. "I'm sorry about all of this. I can't imagine this is how you expected it to go."
Sam chuckled. "I never really know with Dean if I'm being honest. As I'm sure you know, Gabe can be quite a handful, so it was really a toss-up in how the two of them would get along. I hope that out there they can bond over cars or something at least. My brother loves great cars, and Gabriel can ate least appreciate them. I'm really hoping Gabriel brings up the Impala and it can work out from there." Sam sighed. "I just hope that those two are able to work everything out." Castiel nodded. "He seems to like you though." Castiel's face flushed. "I don't think anyone but me has talked to Dean like that in a long time."
"Ha, well I was a little surprised myself that I actually did that. I'm normally pretty shy around guys like him." Castiel shrugged.
"Any particular reason why?" Sam asked.
"Well, he kinda has a 'jock' vibe around him, and people of that type were definitely not my friends in high school."
"Get bullied a lot?" Sam asked.
"Ha! Is it that obvious?" Castiel scoffed. "A little closeted gay boy in a trenchcoat, in Salt Lake City Utah? Heart of the Mormons and my super religious father and brothers? I'm surprised I even made it out of there without anyone actually outing me." Castiel laughed. "I only had boyfriends once I moved out of state and away from their crazy overcontrolling lifestyle. And even then I had to keep a pretty low profile. I even faked dating Charlie a few times in order to keep my brothers off my back, and she's literally dripping rainbows and glitter."
Sam laughed and leaned forward. "That sounds rough dude, but I'm glad you made it out."
Castiel shrugged. "Eh, kinda sorta. My dad is barely around so I never saw him much even as a child, but my brothers are the ones that both myself and Gabe have to look out for. Gabriel's basically a brother to me, and that means he's just as fucked for liking men as I am in this family." He sighed. "I don't wanna scare you, but I'm just not sure how much Gabe's told you about how bad our family can be."
"Well, uh. Besides you, he doesn't really talk about them much. He says he doesn't really like to." Sam seemed really down after saying this.
Castiel paused as he realized this was probably something the two hadn't talked about, or more Gabe hadn't talked about. "Yeah, well I guess he's always been the one who's tried to spread his wings the fastest. He was the first one to move out early and go fending for himself. The only reason he's in the family's good graces is that he shows them proof that he's succeeding and they don't know that he likes women and men." Castiel sighed. "But, Gabe's the type of person who would give up a lot for what he truly cares about, and I'm sure it's not what you want but he'd probably leave the family if he's serious enough about you." Castiel quickly caught himself. "N-not that you're not now! Just, you've only been dating for so long y'know? I'm also not trying to make any assumptions either."
Sam laughed. "Dude, you're good." Sam's face fell into a soft smile and he fiddled with his hands. "He hasn't told me much, but it seems pretty hard for him to talk about it. I can't imagine it was very good if he's hardly even able to speak about it." Sam gave the smallest shrug. "He'll tell me when he's ready, but I appreciate you trying to help."
The bell at the door rang again as it opened and the two turned to see Gabriel and Dean returning back to then. The two seemed on better terms and Dean had clearly calmed down since when he first left. Gabriel took the opportunity to sit next to Sam, which left Castiel scooting over so that Dean could sit by him. As Dean sat down his knee brushed Castiel's thigh and they both felt shivers go up their spines. Castiel blushed and averted his eyes whereas Dean coughed awkwardly before immediately asking Sam a question.
"So, where's the pie? I was told there'd be pie." Dean turned to his brother.
"Ah, well, uh, Gabe?" Sam asked.
"Yeah, I made some up special." Gabe smiled. "But, Cassie could you show Dean where I put it and cut him a piece? I don't suppose Sam or I want any, and I'd like to talk to him privately if you don't mind."
"Uh, y-yeah. Sure." Castiel's brain short-circuited at the thought of being alone with Dean. Dean himself felt butterflies flutter in his stomach at the thought of being alone with Castiel, but the idea of pie brought him to his feet as he figured with pie he could have all the confidence in the world. Castiel exited the booth and Dean shifted awkwardly in place as he waited for a direction on where to go. Castiel smiled and laughed to himself. "It's this way." Castiel led Dean towards the back and the blue-eyed man saw Charlie wink at him as he opened the door for Dean. Castiel blushed and glared at her as Dean made his way through the door and she just smiled back at him. Castiel rolled his eyes before following Dean into the back room. "He wanted it kept in the warmer in the back." Castiel led Dean to the small kitchenette that was to the left of the staff lounge. Waiting on the counter was a fresh apple pie that sat on a heating pad that was designed for food.
"Man, she smells good!" Dean smiled and Castiel chuckled that the man was practically drooling.
"Gabe does make pretty good pies." Castiel smiled and pulled out a plate and a pie server. With efficiency as if he has done it a million times, he quickly cuts into the pie and serves it perfectly on the plate. Dean stood in awe just slightly as he's been served pie countless times, but this man's efficiency made his stomach flip. Whilst Dean was staring in awe, Castiel had reached into a drawer and placed a fork by the man's plate. "Here you are."
"Thank you. You're pretty good at that." Dean motioned to the server before picking up his plate and fork.
"Oh, thanks. I've had plenty of practice." Castiel flushed. "There's a staff lounge with tables and chairs that you can sit at by the way, a great pie deserves to be enjoyed with respect." Castiel smiled and led the other man back to the staff room. The man followed him and early sat down in order to respectfully finish his dish as fast as possible. Once Dean had sat down, he took a bite and Castiel simply sat on the armrest of the couch, watching him.
"Dude, this is amazing." Dean's facial reaction to eating the pie made Castiel's stomach flip with a very unholy thought. "Gabriel made this?"
Castiel chuckled awkwardly and wanted to quickly move past the thought that he had earlier. "Yeah, his talents are a little surprising if you go off of the look of him alone." The ravenette watched as the man in front of him quickly finished the rest of his pie. "He really is a great baker though."
"You could say that again, a million times." Dean grinned. "I'm not sure if I've ever had a pie before that was this good. Your cousin will ruin me."
"Just come by whenever you like then. Gabe makes fresh pies every other day." Castiel suddenly blushed as he realized what he could have originally insinuated. The thought had also crossed Dean's mind originally as well, but he turned away when he blushed.
"Noted." Dean coughed awkwardly before standing up. "Uh, you're Cassie?" Dean met the boy's eyes genuinely for the first time and they both felt their worlds stop for a second.
Castiel was the first one to really break out of it. "Ah, it's Castiel, actually." He flushed, slightly embarrassed. "'Cassie''s just what Gabe calls me." He gave the other man a small smile. "To be honest I don't like it all that much, but what can you do?" He shrugged.
Dean chuckled half to himself. "Yeah, I mean I still call Sam, Sammy. I know he doesn't like it but I'm his brother, y'know?"
"I guess it's just the misfortune of the younger relatives." Castiel sighed fondly.
"Yeah, can't help you there." Dean smiled. "Uh, where can I wash this?"
"Oh, the sink's over there but I can-" Dean had already started towards where Castiel had gestured and as Castiel tried to stop him, they bumped into each other and apologized before stopping and realizing their proximity. Castiel looked up a the taller man and he swallowed a lump in his throat that he didn't realize he had. Dean got lost in what he considered almost sapphire eyes and didn't snap out of it until Charlie's voice rang through.
"Hey, Castiel!" Charlie stood in the doorway of the staff lounge and Castiel and Dean quickly separated as if they had just been caught committing a crime. "Uh... sorry to interrupt, but Ishim is here." She frowned and Castiel felt his stomach drop. Dean glanced in between the two and he didn't need to be told that this was not going to be a pleasant situation.